Distractions
Posted on Wed Sep 9th, 2020 @ 11:18am by Major Cornelius Tremble
Edited on on Tue Sep 15th, 2020 @ 7:28am
1,644 words; about a 8 minute read
Mission:
Episode 10 - New Home, Same Pioneers
Location: Holo tank 2; Marine Country: USS Pioneer
Timeline: MD006 2300 hrs
Neil leaned back in his office chair, scrubbing at his eyes with one hand, then looked at the chronometer. Twenty two forty hours. Grunting, he looked at his desk and the mostly finished after-actions. Two personnel in Sick Bay, and one KIA.
The notification team had went to Eubilex’s family hours before the Hawkeye had docked. Tomorrow, he’d have to make his respects but that and the after-actions could wait. His stomach growled at him reminding him that he hadn’t eaten since before the mission had started and that drew his mind to Talida.
That caused more than just hunger to knot his stomach.
He’d tried to message her when they were off loading the wounded and Eubilex’s body and the computer had told him she was no longer aboard the Station or Pioneer.Then he’d gotten immersed in getting his people looked after, and all the paperwork that went with the mission.
Basically he’d buried himself in work, chasing not to face whatever had happened now. There was a personal communique waiting for him and with a sigh, he queued it up and leaned back in his chair.
Four minutes later, Tali’s holo disappeared and he fumbled at his desk drawer, pulling out a bottle of bourbon and a kraft cheese glass. He tapped a command into his desk top and a bowl of ice and a small pitcher of water appeared and he applied both steadfastly to three ounces distilled corn and drained half of it in one go.
“So, that’s it,” he said aloud, to himself. “Ordered back StarFleet medical and she’ll probably have no time to write and I should move on.”
He couldn’t understand it, but wasn’t surprised by it. Honestly, she’d been a bit of a flake when they’d gotten together but that had been overcome by physical attraction to each other and pushed through to start breaking the surface armor they’d both had.
But, some things weren’t to be and after he’d reduced the bourbon in his glass as well as two more of it’s friends, he said to himself. “Well, it’s not surprising. Dad always said, if the corp had wanted me, or him, to have a significant other, they’d have issued one.”
With that, Neil stuck the cork back in the bottle and put the glass in the fresher. Booze wasn’t the answer, he had the duty tomorrow and seeing Eubilex’s widow and children with a half a load on wasn’t the image the corp needed.
Finally, he decided letting himself think too much wasn’t necessarily a good idea. The marine checked the marines holo-tank, then changed into boots, fatigue pants and a USS Pioneer Detachment 75747 t-shirt and headed out for some training.
Marine country was relatively quiet, but Neil checked in with the Corporal of the Guard and then entered the four meter square Marine dedicated holo-tank and said, “Computer. Activate training simulation. Safeties set to minimum.”
“Please set parameters,” the computerized voice sounded.
Sighing, Neil said. “Full contact. If I go unconscious,an end simulation and summon Corporal Thompson. Edged weapons are permissible. Enemies armed with variety of melee weapons which do blunted, shock damage.”
“Parameters reset,” the computer responded after a few beats. “Noted in departmental log.”
“Fine,” the marine said and as the that cycled, he wondered what the Pioneer’s former Counselor would say about this.
Then he snorted. Tallida would likely be the first person to say he needed a good arse kicking. He really didn’t like missing her but he knew he’d have to deal with it.
As he entered an unfamiliar passageway. The overhead lighting flashed and he could hear a discordant klaxon in the distance. He didn’t recognize the bulkheads, which didn’t mean much. His HUD contact cycled and tried to reach out, but the handshake was having trouble which meant the ship or structure he was in was having power issues.
Or someone was running a scrambler.
Focusing his mind he turned and went down the passageway, moving quietly and staying to the left hand bulkhead. When he came to the first three doors, he found those sealed.
The fourth had a Nausicann standing half in the door and he squared his shoulders and moved without hesitation. Remembering his training, he processed things. Since he couldn’t hear voices, it was likely the Nausicann was watching someone do something in that compartment.
Said someone most likely would be attending to the task at hand. The marine gambled on that when he reached up to suddenly grab the chin of the watcher while the heel of his hand struck the base of the spine, just above the collar of its armor.
If Neil had been shorter, he’d have had to go for a pressure point, which was iffy given the armor. As it was, as soon as his heel struck his other hand found the chin and twisted sharply, breaking the neck an he continued the motion pulling the now lifeless body away from the doorway and tried to slide it noiselessly to the deck.
The marine wasn’t worried about the light change aspect warning whatever was inside the compartment. Noise was more of an issue but the only sound that came was the sound of the body as it slid onto the floor.
Moving to the door frame, Neil looked inside the room and saw two more Nausicann’s working at opening a secure storage locker. Neil did recognize the room configuration: one of several small armories found on larger Federation vessels.
He had a point of reference now and he stooped to pick up the Ferrengi-made hand phaser the watcher had dropped. He leveled it at the left-most intruder and hit the firing stud.
Nothing happened save a vibration and an audible beep.
Both Nausicann’s turned at the sound and Neil shrugged and threw the phaser at his intended target, bouncing it off of the intruder’s head as he set himself at the doorway where they’d have to bottle neck to gat at him.
Neil panted and tried to get the numbness out of his shoulder where the shock knife had caught him. Both Nausicann’s were down. He’d let the first bull rush him, evading the knife thrust and getting a wrist lock as he let the warrior’s momentum carry him head first into the passageway wall behind him. That stunned the warrior, dropping it to hands an knees as the marine proceeded to break it’s wrist.
Then Neil had had to concentrate on the other Nausicann as it boiled out of the door. This one had a club and as it cleared the door frame, it raised it’s arm for a blow. Neil moved inside the blow and hammered three hard jabs into the warrior’s ribs as his left arm wrapped around the attackers right, locking the elbow painfully. Neil had stomped down on the foot of the Nausicann adding to the messages the warrior’s nerves were sending to it’s brain.
Finally, he swept his elbow up catching it in the chin. Teeth went flying and the Nausicann roared in pain as Neil kept it’s right arm locked and stepped past it’s right leg and hip threw it into the first who was groggily climbing to its feet. Both of them went down in a pile together and Neil moved in getting a strong kick to the head of the one he’d thrown, knocking it out.
The other managed to get it’s feet under him and levered itself to it’s feet, nose bleeding as it pulled another knife awkwardly from it’s belt with it’s non-broken hand and charged. Neil started backing up, but forgot about the watcher’s body and he half tripped. The last Nausicann standing was on him, the knife blade hitting his shoulder and sending an electric charge into him, rendering the arm useless.
Neil managed to force the second jab with the knife upwards and turned into the Nausicann’s trunk, ramming an elbow back into it’s midriff as he bodily pushed the Nausicaan against the bulkhead. It didn’t drop the blade, but was distracted enough by the move that Neil was able to turn and drive stiffened fingers into it’s eyes, and then punch it in the throat.
That had dropped the third Nausicann gasping to the deck and another punch, this time with stiffened knuckles to it’s throat had caused it to die within a short period while Neil tried to get his wind back and picked up one of the knives.
He entered the compartment and took stock, then moved to one of the secure compartments and tapped a screen. A flickering legend came up then and Neil read, USS Achillies. His access code told him the unit was on internal power and sealed: and he didn’t have the authority to access it.
Turning, he picked the Ferengi phaser and examined it. The power pack showed full, so there was an inhibitor running and it was just a paperweight for now. The beeping and vibration had been warnings that something was wrong.
He tucked it into his waistband and muttered, “Poor combat design. Gave the enemy a good warning anyway.”
Neil moved into the passageway, his mind now fully off of his troubles…
Captain Cornelius Tremble
Marine Commanding Officer/Second Officer, USS Pioneer
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